Truth
by VexieChan
Summary: Omi finally learns the truth about his past, about his origin, and about himself. Oneshot


Truth

AJ Wonkette

Summary: Omi finally learns the truth about his past, his origin, and about himself. One-shot

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I don't get anything out of this other than giggles and sleep deprivation.

A/N: This idea came from the episodes "Days Passed" and then from "Omi Town." Omi's lack of a past made me sad, and then an interesting idea occurred to me. Here's hoping y'all don't think I'm crazy. Oh, and this takes place a little bit into the future.

Feedback: Is the only thing that'll inspire me to call off the Jack-Bots. I know where you live. Remember that, my friend. Remember that.

Story:

"…Happy birthday to you!" The song ended and the bald monk's friends cheered. He beamed up at them happily.

"Make a wish, Omi!" Kimiko cried, nudging her friend happily. Omi closed his eyes and blew out the candles on top of his cake. He made the same wish he did every year: _"I wish I knew who I was."_ If his friends asked, the short boy would reply that he'd wished for something fun or silly. He would make them laugh. He never told them what he really wished for. If he told them…it might never come true.

"May I open my presents now? Please?" Omi asked sweetly, pushing such thoughts from his mind and focusing on the promise of gifts.

"You know," Raimundo said, pulling a box from his jacket, "it's kind of scary when an eighteen year old boy is still begging for presents like a five year old."

"Excuse me, who was it who made us all get up early on Christmas so we could see what we got?" Kimiko teased. She handed Omi a brightly wrapped present. Clay also produced a gift. Omi tore open the packages with great enthusiasm. From Rai, he got a small dictionary of slang, a running joke between the two. From Kimiko, Omi received "Goo Zombies Platinum Edition," which was not yet released anywhere in the world. From Clay, there was a painting of Omi himself meditating against a sunset. It was quite well done, and looked almost believable, were it not for the utterly random cactus that sat nearby.

"Thank you all very much!" Omi said happily.

"Would you like to open _my_ gift, young monk?" Master Fung walked into the room. He held out a package wrapped in brown paper. It looked oddly aged. Omi, however, took it enthusiastically.

"Oh, thank you Master Fung." He said gratefully. He opened the package to reveal a wooden box. Omi's eyes widened. Carved on the box was the chinese character that represented his name, surrounded in beautifully painted waves. Omi raised his eyes to his mentor.

"This box is quite old," he said slowly, "But it was made for me. It has my name on it, and my element. Where did it come from?" Master Fung laid a hand on Omi's shoulder.

"Omi, today you are eighteen." He said gravely. "I was instructed to give that box to you on your eighteenth birthday."

"Instructed?" Omi questioned. "But, by who?" The old monk's blue eyes met Omi's own black ones.

"Dashi." He replied. All four monks gasped.

"A box from Dashi." Omi looked at the box in wonder. Boxes from Dashi were known for their magic. The last box he had received from the Grand Master had contained a spell which had trapped the evil Heylin witch Wu Ya.

"Open it!" Raimundo cried excitedly.

"Yeah, Omi." Kimiko agreed. "I want to see what's inside!"

"I'm curiouser than a hound dog in a meat locker." Clay added. Omi looked at his friends, then nodded. He undid the clasp on the front of the box, then opened it. A bright blue light shone from inside. Omi found he could not tear his eyes from it. When it faded away, it took the temple and his friends with it. Instead, Omi found himself in a tranquil garden. Sitting in a meditative position on the ground before him was Grand Master Dashi himself.

"Hello, Omi." He said, opening his eyes and smiling. "Happy eighteenth birthday."

"What is this? Have I traveled to your time once more?" Omi asked. Dashi shook his head.

"No. This is a bend in the time-stream. Here, your time and mine clash. It is an old bend. I came for one purpose, eighteen years ago. Can you guess why?" Omi shook his head slowly.

"I came to give this to a young Xiaolin Master by the name of Fung." Dashi said, revealing a basket. "Come, take a look." Omi crept forward, his heart beating faster. He peered into the basket. Inside, a baby slept soundly. A tiny, golden-skinned baby. A baby with an incredibly round head.

"Is that…" Omi did not finish the question, already knowing the answer. The baby in the basket was _himself_. He did not know how or why, but he knew it was him. He reached out to touch his sleeping form, but drew back. He looked up at the man before him.

"Yes." Dashi replied, smiling admiringly. "Now, to business. Eighteen years is a long time. Look how much you've grown."

"Yes…" Omi said absently, his mind spinning.

"I imagine you have some questions for me. Which is why I locked the time bend in this box and gave it to Master Fung to give to you on your eighteenth birthday." Dashi said gently. Omi looked at him for a long time.

"Who am I?" He asked, the question that had haunted him for years.

"Very good. That's a good question to start with. Sit down, Omi." Dashi said. Omi complied, never taking his eyes from those of his idol. Dashi looked at him for a long time.

"You, put very simply, are me." He stated. Omi's mouth fell open. He closed it, then opened it again, then closed it once more. Finally, he found his voice.

"I don't understand." He admitted.

"You were the one who gave me the idea." Dashi said. "When you came back in time to get another puzzle box from me, I realized you were me. As soon as you left, I began trying to figure out how I did it. And then it came to me."

"What?" Omi was leaning forward, his hands on his knees, gripping the fabric of his black pants. Dashi produced and held out two Shen Gong Wu. Omi stared at them. His face paled. He sat back, stunned.

"The…the Ring of Nine Dragons." He said quietly, his voice just above a whisper. "And the Rio Reverso."

"Very good." Dashi praised. Omi slowly raised his eyes to Dashi's. The Grand Master's grin faded when he saw the pain within them.

"So this is what I am? Nothing but a copy of you? A shrunken copy of the Grand Master Dashi?" Omi asked, his voice raising with his anger. "Am I just an experiment? To see what would happen? To see if you could do it? Is that all I am to you?"

"Omi." Dashi said gently.

"I spent all this time looking for my family, looking for myself. For all of my life, I just wanted to know who I was. And now I find out that I am nothing! I am not even my own person! I am a copy of you! I am nothing but your lab mouse!" Omi cried, on his feet now.

"Omi!" Dashi snapped. "That is not what you are."

"Then what am I?" Omi asked, years of emotion behind those four words. His voice fell with his eyes. His plea was spoken in a whisper. "Please, tell me. What am I?" Dashi stood and put his hands on Omi's shoulders.

"You are me. You are a part of me." Dashi said. "You are my family. And I am yours." Tear-filled eyes met his own.

"What am I to you?" Omi spoke so quietly, he was unsure if he spoke at all.

"Omi, I don't know how this sort of thing works, but for what it's worth, I have called you my son, from day one." The Grand Master replied. "And if you like, you may think of me as your father." Omi stared at him in amazement. For the first time in his life, someone claimed him as their own, someone wanted him. Unable to hold back any longer, the boy collapsed into the arms of his "father," tears falling freely from his face. An eternity of moments later, when Omi pulled away, he noticed that his face was not the only tear streaked one.

"If you made me as your…your son," Omi tried the word out with pleasure, "then why did you send me away to the future?" What he did not say was "Why did you send me away from you?" and that was the question Dashi heard.

"You yourself told me, Omi. When you visited me from your time, you told me of the release of Wu Ya. A time would come when the world would need a new hero. That's why I made you, and that's why I gave you up to the future." The Grand Master explained.

"So I am here to save the world?" The Dragon of Water asked.

"Bingo." Dashi replied, grinning. "You're the only hope this world has."

"What about the other Dragons? And all of the other Xiaolin Warriors?" Omi wanted to know. "I have learned that it takes us all as one to save the world."

"Yes, this is true." Dashi admitted. "But magic has run out in your time. Very few remain that can wield sorcery like I can. Like you will soon be able to. Which reminds me. You're wondering why I waited until your eighteenth birthday to tell you all this, aren't you?"

"Well, yes." Omi admitted.

"To tell you the truth, I would not have set this little meeting up at all except for this little detail." Dashi admitted. "Your powers will be manifesting soon. Besides the elemental powers you have as a Xiaolin Dragon, you have a great deal of sorcery. Like me. It manifested on my eighteenth birthday, so naturally, it will for you as well."

"How do I use them?" Omi asked enthusiastically. He could hardly contain the thought of being able to wield_ more_ power than he already could.

"I cannot explain it to you. You will understand in time. There is no secret to sorcery. It is simply a part of you, and just as you learned to use your hands, you will learn to use your sorcery. It will come naturally. However, it can cloud your mind. The Heylin Witch, Wu Ya was once good, until her own sorcery manifested. She allowed the power to cloud her mind, and it ate away at her, turning her into what you see today." Dashi explained.

"Why didn't you become clouded as well?" Omi wanted to know, looking up at him fearfully. He had been evil once, by the trickery of Chase Young. For many months afterward, he could not look himself in the face, knowing what evils he had committed. He had no desire to ever be that way again.

"I was able to keep my mind clear. I will show you how. Do not worry, Omi. I am here today to tell you all you need to know from me." Dashi said reassuringly.

---

The remaining three Xiaolin Dragons stood aghast, their mouths open.

"I'm sorry, I dunno if it's just me, but does anyone else know what just happened?" Clay asked.

"Yeah, where'd Omi go?" Kimiko added.

"I do not know." Master Fung admitted. "I do not know what the box was meant to do. The only one who can tell us is Omi himself."

"Well, that's great. Let's go ask him. Oh, no wait, we _can't_ because that box made him disappear!" Raimundo said sarcastically.

"I think we need to start trying to figure out how to get him back." Kimiko said, frowning. "We should look in the scrolls, you know, see if they say anything about a magic Omi-box."

"Hold on just a minute." Dojo said haughtily. "I knew Dashi, maybe I can figure out what his little gadget does." He slithered over to the box, picking it up and inspecting it.

"Hmmm." Dojo muttered.

"Well? What do you think, little partner?" Clay asked, leaning over the dragon's shoulder.

"I have no idea." Dojo admitted. He shook the box, listening to it. He shrugged and set it on the floor. Strangely, it didn't stop shaking.

"Um, Dojo, I think you broke it!" Raimundo said nervously, taking a step backwards.

Without warning, the box opened, the blue light flashing once more. When it faded, Omi stood in the center of the room, looking more serene than any of the monks had ever seen him. There was a general rush to the smallest warrior's side.

"Omi!" Kimiko cried, throwing her arms around him. "Are you okay?"

"What happened?" Raimundo wanted to know.

"What was that?" Clay put in.

"I toldja I'd get him out!" Dojo said happily, wrapping himself around Omi's head. Omi smiled at his friends.

"I am fine, I just received a gift from my father." He said. Everyone stared at him in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" Clay asked.

"For all my life I have wondered where I came from. Today, I learned the truth. Grand Master Dashi is my father. I am his son. And a new Shen Gong Wu has just been activated." Omi said, his eyes lighting up. Dojo quirked an eyebrow.

"What are you talking ab--." The dragon went rigid. "He's right!"

"How did you know that?" Kimiko asked. Omi smiled.

"My father taught me." He replied. He struck a pose. "Now let us go, before Jack Spicer beats us to the kick!" And for once, no one bothered to correct him.

end –

A/N: So yeah. Not very well written, I'm afraid. I really just wanted to put forth my theory. If you want to expound on this, re-write it, or use the idea, I highly encourage it. I don't really plan on doing anything with it. I just randomly thought it up. So go for it! I'll read it.

Soon to come:

_Giant_ – a Clay-centric short. Planning on about four chapters.

_Stupid Kid_ – Jack-centric one-shot. In the revising process. Should be up.

_Pentagram_ – A full-length fic, I think. Jack-centric, though everyone's in it quite a bit. So stay tuned, fans!

Time to review…..Jack-bots…?


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